Caleb Duerr, who escaped from the Plumas County jail Sept. 27, was arrested Oct. 17 by Plumas sheriff’s officers who surrounded his residence in Johnsville.
After establishing a perimeter around the house and observing Duerr there, the officers ordered him out of the residence and took him into custody without incident, said Chandler Peay, public information officer with the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office.
Almost three weeks after his escape, Duerr, 39, is back in the Plumas County jail. Plumas County Superior Court Judge Douglas M. Prouty ordered him held without bail on a charge of felony escape.
A few days before his arrest Oct. 17, Plumas sheriff’s officers learned that Duerr may have returned to his Johnsville residence. On the morning of Oct. 17, the PCSO Special Weapons and Tactics Team, along with the PCSO Investigations Unit, conducted an operation to confirm Duerr’s presence at the property.
They contacted the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team, Drone Team, K9 Unit, and Hostage Negotiation Team, as well as the Sierra County Sheriff’s Office K9 Unit, Peay said. Other agencies contacted included U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office K9, SWAT and Drone Team, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Reno field office, and Eastern Plumas Health Care.
Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister expressed relief that Duerr had been captured.
“I’m very grateful to our sheriff’s office, particularly Sgt. Steve Peay, who has worked every day since the escape happened to try and get this guy back in custody,” said Hollister. He also thanked the many agencies who assisted with the arrest, particularly Washoe County, Nevada, and its SWAT team.
Duerr escaped Sept. 27 from the jail’s recreational area, managing to manipulate two fenced areas and flee next door to the O’Reilly Auto Parts store, Chandler Peay said. Once there, he was able to immediately get a ride from a subject who was at the store.
Until he was located in Johnsville, Duerr had last been seen walking south on Plumas County Road A-23 from State Route 70 near Beckwourth in Sierra Valley, according to Peay.
Duerr had been held in the Plumas jail for several months on a range of charges, including felony domestic violence with great bodily injury, criminal threats and false imprisonment, said Peay. Since those initial charges were filed, officials have added two additional criminal charges for violating restraining orders, said Hollister. The most recent charge is felony escape.
